Method for manufacturing a hearing device and a use of the method

• US 20070186418A1
• Filed: 03/01/2006
• Published: 08/16/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Phonak AG (Sonova Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Phonak AG (Sonova Holding AG)
• Inventors: Meier, Hilmar, Vonlanthen, Andi
• Application Number:
  US11/365,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20070186418A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 29/896.200
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/405 by combining a plurality of transducers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/65 Housing parts, e.g. shells, tips or moulds, or their manufacture
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/658 Manufacture of housing parts
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/4957 Sound device making
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49572 Hearing aid component making

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a hearing device (10) that is at least partially insertable into a hearing device user'"'"'s ear canal (7), the hearing device (10) comprising at least two microphones or at least one microphone with two entry ports, the method comprising the steps of:

• • determining a three-dimensional structure of a hearing device user'"'"'s ear canal (7), deriving shape of the hearing device based on said three-dimensional structure,
  • defining an outer surface (11) of the hearing device (10) to further define the shape of the hearing device (10), said outer surface (11) pointing towards surroundings when the hearing device (10) is inserted into the user'"'"'s ear (1),
  • positioning openings (13, 14) in said outer surface (11), said openings (13, 14) being in communication with sound inlets of said microphones,
    wherein the step of positioning said openings (13, 14) is performed after defining the outer surface (11), and wherein said positioning is optimized in such a manner that a maximum directional selectivity and noise performance of the microphones is obtained.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a hearing device that is at least partially insert-able into a hearing device user'"'"'s ear canal, the hearing device comprising at least two microphones or at least one microphone with two entry ports, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a three-dimensional structure of a hearing device user'"'"'s ear canal,

deriving shape of the hearing device based on said three-dimensional structure,

defining an outer surface of the hearing device to further define the shape of the hearing device, said outer surface pointing towards surroundings when the hearing device s inserted into the user'"'"'s ear,

positioning openings in said outer surface, said openings being in communication with sound inlets of said microphones,

wherein the step of positioning said openings is performed concurrently or after defining the outer surface, and wherein said positioning is optimized in such a manner that a maximum directional selectivity and/or noise performance of the microphones is obtained.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said optimizing is performed by maximizing a distance between two openings in said outer surface.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein at least two openings are positioned in such a manner that a line defined by the at least two openings and a horizontal plane enclose an angle (α

) that is within a range of ±

20 degrees.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least two openings are positioned in such a manner that a line defined by the at least two openings and a vertical plane enclose a further angle that is within a range of ±

15 degrees.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of positioning the microphones directly at said openings.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of selecting a microphone type or types out of a number of possible microphone types, the selection being performed on the basis of available space at the openings.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of positioning a further opening on a connecting line of at least two other openings.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising the step of adjusting parameters and/or algorithms in the hearing device and/or in the calibration and fitting software, taking into account the distance between the openings.

9. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of adjusting parameters and/or algorithms in the hearing device and/or in the calibration and fitting software, taking into account the angle to the horizontal plane.

10. The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of adjusting parameters and/or algorithms in the hearing device and/or in the calibration and fitting software, taking into account the further angle to the vertical plane.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of adjusting parameters and/or algorithms in the hearing device due to a result obtained during the optimizing step.

12. A use of the method of claim 1 for manufacturing a left and a right hearing device of a binaural hearing system.

13. The use of claim 12, wherein distances between openings for the left hearing device are equally adjusted to the distances between openings for the right hearing device.

14. The use of claim 12, wherein the angle between openings and the horizontal plane for the left hearing device are equally adjusted to the angle between openings and the horizontal plane for the right hearing device.

15. The use of claim 12, wherein at least some of the distances between openings for the left hearing device are not equally adjusted to the corresponding distances between openings for the right hearing device.

16. The use of claim 12, wherein at least some of the angle between openings and the horizontal plane for the left hearing device are not equally adjusted to the corresponding angle between openings and the horizontal plane for the right hearing device.